One of the nightmare scenarios being faced by medical researchers is the advent of so-called superbugs that are resistant to antibiotics. Some have suggested that the development is so dire that the world faces a prospect of plagues of these superbugs killing millions in the latter part of this century unless a solution is found.

Some researchers at Oregon State University think they may have found an answer to superbugs. They have developed a molecule called peptide-conjugated phosphorodiamidate morpholino oligomer or PPMO for short that helps to overcome the resistance of superbugs to anti-biotics. It inhibits the expression of an enzyme called New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase, or NDM-1 that is accompanied by genes that give a superbug its resistance to anti-biotics.

The researchers have tested the molecule in vitro in combination with a common antibiotic called meropenem to fight three different types of bacteria that have the NDM-1 enzyme. They also conducted a mouse study that showed that a combination of PPMO and meropenem was effective in combating a resistant strain of E. coli.

One of the problems with the advent of superbugs is that researchers are running out of antibiotics that are capable of killing them. The more drugs that are used to combat bacteria, the more they evolve to resist them. So, instead, the OSU researchers have found a way to attack the resistance mechanism itself and cause old antibiotics to become productive again. No word exists yet when this breakthrough in biotechnology will start human trials or when it will be available in a clinical setting.

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So much has been made of the contrast between Baby Boomers and Millennials; how they don’t get along in the workplace; how different they are to manage. But have any of you ever considered just how similar the generations are?

Case in point: I found an article recently that talks about improving employee retention, a topic that interests me. The advice it gave is to improve the “business environment” and focus on employee satisfaction. Sound familiar? I thought so too. The article, entitled Why Employees Stay, is actually from a 1973 edition of the Harvard Business Review.

The main difference between the 1973 article and more current versions was simply the jargon. It spoke of “environment” where today, we talk about “culture.” It discussed ways to improve employee satisfaction whereas we might term it “employee experience.” The pain points employers were facing in 1973 are eerily similar to today’s challenges. How to manage a vast idealistic generation, who have turned against traditional capitalist norms and are restless in their youth. Furthermore, how do we make them happy, keep them happy? How do we turn them into managers and leaders? The answers may surprise you; let nature take its course, allow change to happen. It will happen.

Hippies, Boomers, Millennials, and Change

“Hippies declared their willingness to question authority and distanced themselves from the conformist segments of society. Personality traits and values that hippies tend to be associated with are altruism and mysticism, honesty, joy, and nonviolence. – Wikipedia

Many self-identified hippies continued their lifestyle, even if a bit more subdued. But most, somewhere along the way, stopped identifying with counter culture and assimilated. A significant portion of Hippies became Yuppies (young upwardly mobile professionals) and actually ushered in one of the most prosperous times in American history: the 1980s. I don’t know the catalyst for the change, or precisely when it happened. But I do know that it illustrates how perfectly impractical it is to label an entire generation. It doesn’t allow for change. Change is inevitable.

The Takeaway

I could give you five tips on managing a multi-generational workforce, or five tips on leading Millennials. But instead, I will just encourage you to take a few minutes and read the article from 1973.

“Why do employees stay? The brief answer is “inertia.” Employees tend to remain with a company until some force causes them to leave. The concept here is very like the idea of inertia in the physical sciences: a body will remain as it is until acted on by a force.” Flowers & Hughes, Why Employees Stay (1973) HBR

It isn’t that the article offers some extraordinary piece of advice that will solve all your problems and make your job simpler. On the contrary, it offers the same advice as every article written on the topic currently. However, I hope that you do take from it a sense of solace that 44 years ago, there was a manager just like you, who faced similar challenges and uncertainties. Yet here you are today — and it all worked out.

Our strategy focuses on enabling our clients to recruit the right people for the structure in which they will perform. Please contact us to learn more about our expertise in Executive Search for Commercial Leadership positions in Medical Device and Biotechnology; including Marketing, Strategy, Sales Leadership, Training, Development, etc. We look forward to the opportunity to help you consistently improve your performance and your business!

In the field of stroke treatment, there is a saying “time is brain.” This is because every minute with a clot a patient loses millions of brain cells. Stroke patients living near one to the nation’s Comprehensive Stroke Centers (CSC) are luckier than most. In 2015, 81 percent of stroke patients treated at CSCs had been treated within two hours of their arrival. That is up from 22 percent, in 2013. Early intervention is key to decreasing recovery time, as well. Many patients who may have been sent to a nursing home were able to go to a rehab center instead, and patients who would have needed to go to rehab were able to go home.

Stenting and Clot Removal Capabilities and CSCs

According to the 2015 study, over 60 percent of stroke patients treated with a stent and retriever resumed full independence and function after three months. That is compared with 35 percent of those who were treated with drugs alone. It is estimated that one-third of Americans who suffer strokes each year are found to have blockages in their arteries large enough to be treated with clot-retrieving stents. However, only about 28,000 were actually treated with one last year, according to Stacey Pugh, VP of Medtronic’s Neurovascular Division. The reason is due to a lack of facilities, staff, and trained physicians.

Too Few Comprehensive Stroke Centers in the US

According to research, there are only 150- 200 facilities in the U.S. recognized as Comprehensive Stroke Centers. As a result, procedures like neurovascular stenting and clot removal, just aren’t available in many parts of the country.

This is unfortunate on many levels. First, there is the aspect of improved patient outcome which correlates directly with treatment received at comprehensive stroke centers. This is observed in both types of stroke, hemorrhagic and ischemic. There are also the improved outcomes including shortened recovery times associated with neurovascular stenting and clot removal. Finally, the cost reduction that occurs from these improved results.

How Hospitals Can Become Certified as a Comprehensive Stroke Center

So, why then aren’t more hospitals certified as CSCs? The requirements include an in-house neurosurgery unit, specialized training, and space. Currently, 350 U.S. hospitals are equipped to perform the procedures and are working through the process to receive certification as comprehensive stroke centers. According to the AHA, Comprehensive Stroke Center Certification is given to hospitals that meet standards to treat the most complex stroke cases. Eligibility standards include all components of a basic or Primary Stroke Center plus:

experience and expertise treating patients with a variety of ischemic strokes, intracerebral hemorrhage, and subarachnoid hemorrhage

The certification is provided through a partnership between the American Heart Association and the American Stroke Association as well as The Joint Commission.

Our strategy focuses on enabling our clients to recruit the right people for the structure in which they will perform. Please contact us to learn more about our expertise in Executive Search for Commercial Leadership positions in Medical Device and Biotechnology; including Marketing, Strategy, Sales Leadership, Training, Development, etc. We look forward to the opportunity to help you consistently improve your performance and your business!

Glioblastoma, a particularly aggressive type of brain cancer, is among the deadliest forms of the disease. Treatment, according to the American Brain Tumor Association, is particularly challenging. People with the aggressive form of the disease have a median survival time of 14.6 months. 30 percent of the individuals with this form of brain cancer can expect to live for two years, ten percent for five years.

Time Magazine has reported on a new, experimental therapy using the cutting-edge immunotherapy approach to fighting cancer. A team of researchers led by Dr. Behnam Badie from the City of Hope Beckman Research Institute and Medical Center treated a 50 year-old man with advanced glioblastoma with tailored immune cells designed to express proteins that would recognize and destroy his tumor. After removing most of the tumor surgically, the man was injected with the modified immune cells at the tumor site, with the result that it stopped growing. When smaller tumors showed up in other parts of the brain, the researchers treated these as well, with the result that they all but vanished. Without the treatment, the patient would have been dead in weeks. Nine other people in the study are displaying similar outcomes.

Months after the treatment tumors started growing again in different parts of the brain for reasons that were unclear to Badie and his team. However, it looks like these tumors have different proteins than the one that was initially targeted, suggesting that the same treatment could be used with cells designed to express different proteins. The researchers are on their way to developing a precision therapy that will help to lengthen the lives of people suffering from brain cancer considerably.

Our strategy focuses on enabling our clients to recruit the right people for the structure in which they will perform. Please contact us to learn more about our expertise in Executive Search for Commercial Leadership positions in Medical Device and Biotechnology; including Marketing, Strategy, Sales Leadership, Training, Development, etc. We look forward to the opportunity to help you consistently improve your performance and your business!

Suzy Welch, author, and CNBC contributor says that all effective managers have a unique weapon at their disposal which they have used to take their management skills to the next level. What is it? Candor. She advises that managers who speak to their team members frankly, tend to earn respect more easily.

This may sound simple and even counterintuitive considering today’s increasing “p.c.” business environment. However, research shows that candidates want to work for people they respect and trust. By adopting a culture of candor, management can improve their employee’s overall satisfaction.

What is Candor?

Candor is synonymous with purity, fairness, unreserved honesty, forthrightness and sincere expression among others. A manager who uses candor is an emotionally intelligent leader who gains the trust of his team through transparency and openness.

Candor Facilitates Transparency and Trust

In a 2014, American Psychological Association survey of more than 1,500 U.S. workers, it was found that distrust was pervasive among most employees. More than 25 percent of employees stated that they did not trust management or the company for which they worked. Only half of those employees reported that they felt their employers were “up front” with them on all matters. This lack of trust may be due to either perceived or actual transparency issues. Following the financial collapse of 2008, many have become cynical toward corporations and management, assuming that they are being kept in the dark about at least some issues.

Three Tips on Being More Candid with Your Team

The first step is to make it a point to have regular meetings with your team where corporate goals are discussed. When an employee can see the big picture they can understand their role and how it fits into those aims. Understandably, they will be more likely to place trust into management that keeps them in the loop.

Encourage open discussion. Whether you introduce a team forum or simply make it a point to invite commentary, it is important to keep the channel of communication open.

Avoid censorship. This is a tough one. We all know that a disgruntled or unhappy employee is like a disease that spreads. However, as part of your commitment to open discussion, refrain from censoring negative comments on Slack or message forum. Instead, take the opportunity to show yourself responsive and address the comments personally. Take note of the criticism as if there is no ulterior motive, even if you suspect otherwise. Inquire if others have had the same feelings or experiences. By keeping open communication, you have the opportunity to address the smoke before it becomes a fire.

Proof Candor Works

There are several clear advantages a manager enjoys once they cut out the corporate jargon and talk straight with their team. Employee alignment occurs when you take the time to look at the big picture goals and help each member understand their role within the organization. Candid leadership fosters employees who understand the company vision and want to be a part of helping achieve company-wide goals.

When leaders show transparency and openness to ideas, problems are solved faster. Be open and honest with your teams about company challenges. Utilize your employees to help provide solutions. This simple act will breed employee engagement, which we all know is key to employee satisfaction.

Our strategy focuses on enabling our clients to recruit the right people for the structure in which they will perform. Please contact us to learn more about our expertise in Executive Search for Commercial Leadership positions in Medical Device and Biotechnology; including Marketing, Strategy, Sales Leadership, Training, Development, etc. We look forward to the opportunity to help you consistently improve your performance and your business!

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